Nona or Ibu?

The one thing i hate about going to the hairdresser, is that you are staring at yourself in the mirror the whole time. I don't really hate my looks, but those mirrors are revealing too much to my liking. And you sit there for at least twenty minutes, no chance of looking away.

One funny thing was when I saw my reflection in the mirror and followed it down, I saw a pair of big white feet wearing golden laced shoes. I didn't remember putting those on that morning,
and come to think of it, I did not recall my feet to be white nor that big. They belonged to the lady who was getting a haircut on the other side of the mirror wall. She must be seeing my dangling feet when looking underneath that wall. Funny, but off topic.

Although... there's always some weird things you discover while looking at yourself in the mirror for so long. I always see my puffy eyes and blemish on my skin. I look for wrinkles and sometimes find that I look so young. And that is not always a good thing, i can assure you that!

It's not nice when you are asked to show your id-card when entering a club. "I am so sorry ma'am, just see it as a compliment." I'm over thirty, gawd! It's worse when people see you as a kid, not taking you seriously. I'm not saying I'm a woman of the world, but i've surely had my learnings. Friendly and heartly, but not that sweet and innocent. Of course my length doesn't help and I'm not planning to dress older.

Okay, i might be a little confused about this age thing myself. I feel young, healthy and alive, everything is new and there is so much more to come. When I turned 30 I felt like a baby. When I turned 31, though, I felt that I had landed in my thirties for real. What does that mean?

I dunno...

After staring into the mirror for twenty minutes, I had a nice lunch. The waitress called me madame. Highly unusual in NL, but I didn't feel offended. Later that day I went to the bank to move my account to the town where my parents live. The lady there asked me if I was over 18. I did not like that.

I no longer feel the need to prove myself, to be taken seriously. It's not neccessary either that people see me as in my thirties, although I am happy and proud with my age. So, I look younger and maybe I feel younger. But I also feel mature and I know I don't talk nonsense. A little confusing for people who meet me for the first time. But fun too. And I get my respect.

One of the drivers in Tehran asked me how old I was. A logical following question was why I did not have any children. "In Iran we say it's better to take the fruit while it's young." Right. It was quiet for a few minutes then. "Or maybe, where you come from, the fruit stays young much longer." Clever, very clever.

Somebody told me that i have a more and stronger feminine air about me nowadays. Which was stimulated by my bond with Are. Now that I took as a compliment.

Age: look, energy and number. Within Culture. Expectations. I shift. Both ways. I was well on my way to have 'huisje, boompje, beestje', settled for. Now all lies open again. Everything is new. Taking my earlier learnings on the ride.

My birthday is just to figure out Dan Millman's nummerology, my horoscope and a good excuse to have a party. With that, I don't look down on people who are younger, or look up to people who are older. At least, not based on their age only.

I am 31. Sure, happy to show you my ID. I know, it's so hard to tell these days.

Sunburn

Yeah, me. I never thought it was possible. 
My brown skin gets deep dark after ten minutes in the sun. I put on sun protection factor 30 to 60, almost a sun block, to prevent from turning into a zebra and I stay under the umbrella. And still I tan heavily, but even.

Also this time I was well prepared. Sun protection factor 35, a sun hat and enough water to drink. A great day of relaxing at the beach. It felt so good to take the wrapping off, especially after being covered up in Iran. I enjoyed and indulged every sun ray on my skin. But when i took a shower that evening, it hurt. Red all over. An even rouge, but not the effect i had wanted.

Never in my life.
Am I turning into a Caucasian after more that thirty years? 
And jeez, when does this burning sensation of the skin stop?

Zadelpijn

If you English speakers don't understand the title immediately, speak it out loud a few times, play with the pronounciation and then you will get an idea. Or, i could just tell you that i'm very happy riding my bike again. The weather is lovely and the pedalling is great. It's just that it's been a while, resulting in some zadelpijn.

What was the shortest way to the station, bicycle-wise? I used to ride that route almost daily, but not during the last ten years. I always went to my parents by car or bus, different route. Now that I live here again for the periods of time that I'm in NL, it should be a cylcing ride down memory lane. Only in that time, the ride was always such a habit, that now i forgot which way memory lane went again. If i would've gotten on my bike and just go, i would've automatically taken my old and the shortest cycling route. It was because I gave it some thought, that i became somewhat confused. So that proves again that i shouldn't think too much ;-)

Sure, i did some biking with Are, but that was more like touring; sightseeing and a picnic. Oh, and i had the zadelpijn then too. But it's been a while since i used cycling as my main way of transport.

In the Netherlands, cycling is a very important way of transportation, often combined with a train ride to another city. It's a whole system of commuting; cyclers have rights, wide cycling paths and obligations, regulations for bike parking. Biking is taken very serious here. Not because we can't afford cars, it's just Dutch.

I got into it again. You need good lighting on the front and on the back to prevent getting a ticket from the police who are over eager to stop you, rain or storm. Always calculate time to find a secure parking place, you are not the only one. A strong lock is a must -Are didn't think we needed extra precautions. That since everybody here owns a bike, there's no need to steel another one's. Bike bizz man. Very often the lock is more worth than the bike itself. - On the other hand, we don't do helmets in NL.

Got all that. So, a happy little biker here. A little surprised by the feeling of freedom that came with it, especially since i have the luxury to own/share a car. It's just so good to be out there! The exercise, the wind in your hair, the sun on your face. I definitely need to rebuild some cycling muscle, though. And of course, as soon as it starts raining, i'll be back in my 205 tin can.

For now, getting on twenty minutes before the train leaves, fifteen minutes of cycling, five to securely park and lock the bike, get a train ticket, read a few chapters on the train and off to the beach! Yeah, I think I'm still entitled to keep my Dutch passport.



bicycle parking back entrance of Leiden Central Station

Esfahan

Abbasi Hotel

When you visit Iran, you must go to the famous city of Esfahan. So we did. And were not disappointed at all.The five hour drive became seven hours, but we love road trips and were in no hurry. We also knew that the hotel was going to be fantastic; an old caravansary that has been made into one of the finest hotels of Iran. The beautiful garden has intimate areas with small fountains and flowers everywhere. After a late dinner we sat out between the roses, enjoying the intoxicating flowery scent.

Sheikh Lotfallah Mosque


Esfahan is probably the most touristy city of Iran. This is one of the few places where you run into other foreigners. It breaths the atmosphere of Paris and is known as the city where you find half the world, centered around the Imam Square. You could continuously be sightseeing for two full days, ticking off the list of mosques, bridges, squares, monuments, churches, synagogues, bazaar's, tea houses, carpet shops, work shops, gardens, palaces, minarets, restaurants and so on. If that is what you want.

Traditional lunchroom

I'm glad to say that we have the same preference for traveling; start the day with a big breakfast, then stroll towards a tea house, sit down, relax and look around, if possible with a ghalion. The plan will evolve during the day. Tips come with the people we meet (one Iranian guy at the tea house knew some Dutch, to my surprise it was 'Goed gedaan jochie'! Later in the evening we approached another guy to ask if he new a good restaurant, he took a Paykan taxi with us and insisted to pay for us and then just left). You could say that the day is filled around food and drinks and in between we come across the most beautiful sites, where we again sit down and relax. That's the way to roll.

Khaju Bridge

We spend our time in Esfahan around the Imam Square, the mosques there, in the garden of our hotel Abbasi and around the bridges. The next morning we went to visit the Armenian Church (we'll do the synagogue next time) on our way out to Abeyane, which I remembered as a sleepy little village, with all buildings in red and all inhabitants over the age of 70. Village was still red, inhabitants haven't gotten any younger, but it was not sleeping. Instead, it was full with (all Iranian) tourists, the only road to Abeyane was jammed with buses and cars, and there was just one restaurant (we think food). It was still worth the visit.

Abeyane

Back in Tehran, leaving in a few days, NL, Qatar, Norway. It was good to see some more of the country before taking off again. The beautiful scenery of mountains, salt lake and dessert, the many people who saw us as a site seeing event, the great food, the different cities, the small villages with their own character and just being on the road. I think i should do these kind of trips more often in NL too. There's so much to see out there, anywhere.

-Esfahan & Abeyane Album-

Still here

I haven't done any writing since i came to Tehran exactly one month ago, and i'm flying back to NL in a couple of days.It's not that there was nothing to write about, i just haven't come 'round it. Too busy? Hehe, well, maybe a little occupied.

I do feel that being less in contact with my life in NL, confirms that my attention is more in Tehran while i am here. A good sign, i would say. Tehran is still not my hometown, far from it, but i do feel more comfortable here. We've been meeting up with some people, although i can't really speak of a social network yet, and i just do my things.

During the weekends we have been out, i'll write about that in a next posting. I'm still doing some studying, i got to practice on Are's knee, but he's still figuring out what to think of Reiki and i've finally started photography. I shoot a lot, do some experimenting and i'm enjoying it very much. Learn by practice, well, i still have a lot to learn. -my gallery-

We managed to extend my visa and as i said before, i fly back to NL in a couple of days. Are will be coming to NL for few days after he's been to Norway and after that, we will have to see. For this adventure in Iran we always have a few things in the back of our mind; getting me a visa, threat of earth quakes, threat of offense towards Iran, Shari'a law and the Iranian government, the effect of sanctions on Iran, being cautious who to talk to and what to say, finding your way in a new world and now we have a new one: vacuum at the project. Does the company stay in the joint-venture or not. Who is to say.

I guess that is all part of this kind of life. It makes getting on with it very uncertain, but you learn how to act on this uncertainty too. You stick by your plan and stay flexible. It's out of your hands and you enjoy day by day. Still, i have to admit, it can be very frustrating. Yet, I feel enough stability that frustration ebbs away quickly. In fact, sometimes it ebbs away too quickly. Nothing changed, the situation is still the same, so i am confused by the shifting of feelings and i try to hold on to the frustration. But it slips away, making way for a feeling of calm and light in my heart. I give in to the latter senses. Am I finally finding back my ease?

-my gallery-